FILM RESTORATION SUMMER SCHOOL
FIAF SUMMER SCHOOL - BOLOGNA 2012

Film restoration online theory course :
distance learning, May 9th to June 20th (on Wednesdays)
Theory lectures and Il Cinema Ritrovato film festival: Bologna, June 23rd through June 30th
Restoration practice classes:
Bologna, July 2nd through July 13th

PHOTOCHEMICAL AND DIGITAL RESTORATION
The innovative Film Restoration / FIAF Summer School 2012 is dedicated to teaching digital and photochemical techniques for the restoration of film heritage. While digital technologies have a wellestablished role in the contemporary film industry, their importance in the restoration of films has been somewhat neglected as a teaching/learning experience.
At L’Immagine Ritrovata laboratory participants will follow the entire restoration process: photochemical, digital (4K, 2K and HD) and sound restoration, from repairing to printing preservation material, from film scanning to film recording, from sound digitization to final sound restoration.

TRAINING PROGRAMME
L’Immagine Ritrovata laboratory’s highly specialized staff will be closely involved in the intensive 2-week training programme and internship. Participants will be divided into groups and will work in each of the laboratory's departments:

- Film repair, comparison and cleaning
- Scanning
- Telecine
- Digital restoration and cleaning
- Digital colour correction
- Sound restoration
- Mastering and Digital Cinema
- Machine room, network management and back-up strategies
- Subtitles
- Film recording
- Photochemical preservation and restoration
- Analog grading
- Print and processing
- Researching non-film material for film restoration

A 3-STEP COURSE
The Film Restoration / FIAF Summer School 2012 is structured along three main course steps:

1. Film restoration online theory course: distance learning, May 9th to June 20th (each Wednesday)
2. Theory lectures and Il Cinema Ritrovato film festival: Bologna, June 23rd to June 30th
3. Restoration practice classes: Bologna, July 2nd to July 13th

        1. Film restoration online theory course: distance learning
For one month before the beginning of classes in Bologna, participants will be provided with theory lessons, downloadable from the Internet on a weekly basis (each Wednesday). This distance learning will include lessons on new digital film restoration techniques, access to materials, and conservation. These online lessons will run from May 9th until June 20th, 2012.

        2. Theory lectures and Il Cinema Ritrovato film festival: meetings with experts
The first week will be entirely devoted to the XXVI edition of Il Cinema Ritrovato film festival, Cineteca di Bologna’s main international event. Since 1987, the festival has investigated the most obscure territories of cinema history, screening the best in “Recovered and Restored Films” from archives around the world. Some screenings will be part of programme. Daily meetings of 2 hours or more with international specialists will be organized for all participants. During the festival week meetings will tackle more general issues, such as film house and archive management, the conservation and preservation of film heritage, cataloguing and other non-film issues. Meetings will also focus on film restoration theory, in particular dealing with working in a film restoration laboratory and analysing specific pieces of restored works. These meetings will introduce the two-week long internship; daily topics will reflect laboratory stages
( http://www.cinetecadibologna.it/restaurare/fiafsummer).

        3. Restoration practice classes:
During the internship participants will be supervised by international experts and laboratory staff as they put into practice what they have learned during their first week of theory. A considerable amount of time will be devoted to restoration practices. For 2 weeks, participants will be offered hands-on experience, working in each of the laboratory's departments. During the internship participants are expected to be in the premises of the L’Immagine Ritrovata laboratory 8 hours a day, for 10 days. Participants will have access to all of the laboratory's departments. Each department will accommodate a maximum of 5 participants. This is considered the right ratio of students per piece of equipment to allow each student the possibility of interacting directly.

INTERNSHIP SUBJECTS

Film Repair, comparison and cleaning
Film handling and inspection: how to use clear film sprocket tape to fix tears and breaks; analysis of old splices; restoring splices by hand or with a cement splicer; repairing film to prepare it for cleaning and printing; film comparison and analysis to chose the best prints for restoration; analysis of intertitles; cleaning 35mm and 16mm film nitrate, triacetate and polyester with an ultrasonic cleaning machine.

Scanning
Scanning of a motion picture image from 35mm and 16mm negative, positive and intermediate materials to a digital file (4K and 2K).

Telecine
Film transfer from 35mm and 16mm negative, positive and intermediate materials to tape, and use of Da Vinci Renaissance control panel.

Digital Restoration
Digital treatment of images using dedicated software to eliminate physical damage to the film resulting from usage and the manual handling of film, as well as the restoration of visual clarity of images by working on problems like grain, instability and flicker without affecting the original material. Digital restoration has a wide range of tools and possibilities; therefore it is vital for archivists to know what can be done in order to establish their specific restoration workflow.

Digital Colour Correction
Film colour correction and colour fade restoration. 4K, 2K, HD, SD conforming, Mastering, Primary and Secondary Colour correction and Titling.

Sound Restoration
Optical and magnetic sound acquisition (35mm, 16mm, 17,5mm) to digital data. Sound Restoration, with dedicated plug-in for editing.

Mastering and Digital Cinema
DCP Encoding and video masters recording.

Machine Room and Network Management
How a machine room works and how all the machines are connected to workstations, and interconnected with each other. Data processing and data transfer, to make a copy of a film on digital support.

Subtitles
Use of software to edit and add subtitles to different supports.

Film Recording
How to set a film recorder to generate master negatives.

Analog Grading
Use of the new Color master 2300 P to set printing values to print from negative to interpositive for preservation, or a positive for screening. Study of the Desmet Method and practical application to recreate tinting and toning.

Print and Processing
Principles of optical and contact printing and their differences; study of different printers, printer loading and usage. Basics of film processing and the analysis of the relationship between and parameters shared by printing and film processing.
Application of Lad, Strip, and other quality-control tools to check the correct operation of printing and development. Quality control.

Research
Research non-film material at the Cineteca library